Abstract
BackgroundChronic liver disease (CLD) encompasses a series of single or multifactorial insults to the liver, most common of which are hepatitis, alcohol abuse, and non-alcoholic liver disease. CLD represents a major public health problem worldwide as well as in Pakistan. Unfortunately, studies evaluating the awareness of its risk factors among people are quite scarce. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge about risk factors of CLD in patients admitted to Dr. Ruth K M Pfau, Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK).MethodsThis quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted at CHK, among 368 patients admitted to CHK, during the period from February 2018 to September 2018. Frequencies and percentages were evaluated for categorical variables using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 22 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). Chi-square test was applied to determine if there was any significant association between the variables. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant.ResultsA scoring scale was developed to assess the level of knowledge. We found that only 32% of our study population had good knowledge about the risk factors of CLD while majority of them (68%) had poor knowledge. Regarding individual risk factors, >60% patients were aware that obesity, high fat intake, prolonged use of drugs, use of alcohol and hepatitis B and C are risk factors of CLD, while most of them did not know diabetes to be a risk factor as well. 51.4% patients thought that hepatitis B and C could not be transmitted via sexual contact and from mother to her baby. There was a positive association between education level and awareness about the risk factors of CLD (p = 0.006).ConclusionFuture interventions to increase public awareness about CLD should promptly be taken. The lack of knowledge about this disease is the main cause of its rapid increment and the reason why it is so prevalent in our part of the world especially Pakistan. More studies and nationwide awareness programs are needed to control its spread.
Highlights
Chronic diseases are responsible for approximately 60% of deaths worldwide [1] among which chronic liver disease (CLD) accounts for almost 2 million deaths per year [2]
We found that only 32% of our study population had good knowledge about the risk factors of Chronic liver disease (CLD) while majority of them (68%) had poor knowledge
Regarding individual risk factors, >60% patients were aware that obesity, high fat intake, prolonged use of drugs, use of alcohol and hepatitis B and C are risk factors of CLD, while most of them did not know diabetes to be a risk factor as well. 51.4% patients thought that hepatitis B and C could not be transmitted via sexual contact and from mother to her baby
Summary
Chronic diseases are responsible for approximately 60% of deaths worldwide [1] among which chronic liver disease (CLD) accounts for almost 2 million deaths per year [2]. CLD-related mortality figures in the USA have increased from being the tenth most leading cause of death in 2001 [4] to the ninth most common among males in 2016 [5]. Risk factors of CLD in Pakistan differ from those in rest of the world and include viral hepatitis (Hepatitis B and C), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), diabetes mellitus, obesity and use of herbal and dietary supplements, while autoimmune hepatitis, Wilson disease, haemochromatosis and alcoholism are among the rare causes [7]. Chronic liver disease (CLD) encompasses a series of single or multifactorial insults to the liver, most common of which are hepatitis, alcohol abuse, and non-alcoholic liver disease. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge about risk factors of CLD in patients admitted to Dr Ruth K M Pfau, Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK)
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